You start down the road to eligibility by working and paying Social Security taxes, either through payroll deductions (required by the Federal Insurance Contributions Act, or FICA) or through income tax filings if you are self-employed (required by the Self-Employed Contributions Act, or SECA). Show
You qualify for Social Security by compiling credits when you pay Social Security taxes on your earnings. You can earn up to four credits per year. Workers qualify for Social Security retirement benefits when they reach 40 lifetime credits. In 2022, $1,510 in income from “covered” employment — work in which you paid Social Security taxes — equals one work credit. You can reach your four-credit maximum by earning at least $6,040 for the year. The credit amounts are adjusted annually for inflation. You become eligible to collect Social Security retirement benefits at age 62. You can check on your eligibility, earnings history and estimated future benefits on the Social Security statement at your online My Social Security account. Keep in mind
We request different documents depending on your circumstances. You can help by being ready to provide the information and documents listed below. You can also use our
Checklist For The Online Medicare, Retirement, And Spouses Application to help you gather the information you need to apply. Documents we may ask for include: If our records show you’ve already provided proof of age or citizenship or lawful alien status for an earlier Medicare or
Social Security claim, you do not need to submit the documents again. We will return all documents and photocopies unless specifically told otherwise. Even if you don't have everything, don't delay applying for Social Security retirement benefits. You can provide the missing documents later. We may be able to help you get them. In many cases, your local Social Security
office can contact your state Bureau of Vital Statistics and verify your information online at no cost to you or find other ways to get the information we need. If you delay signing up, you could lose some benefits you may be due. Understanding SSI Home Page / Understanding Supplemental Security Income SSI Eligibility Requirements Anyone who is: And, who:
WHAT DOES "AGED" MEAN?"Aged" means age 65 or older. WHAT IS "BLINDNESS" FOR AN ADULT OR CHILD?Blindness in our disability programs means: you have a central visual acuity for distance of 20/200 or less in your better eye with use of a correcting lens; or you have a visual field limitation in your better eye, such that the widest diameter of the visual field subtends an angle no greater than 20 degrees. If you have a visual impairment, but are not blind according to our rules as defined above, you may still be eligible for SSI benefits on the basis of disability. See the definitions of disability for children and adults
below. WHAT DOES “DISABLED” MEAN FOR A CHILD?If you are under age 18 we may consider you “disabled” if you have a medically determinable physical or mental impairment, (including an emotional or learning problem) that:
If you are age 18 or older, the adult definition of disability explained below applies. WHAT DOES “DISABLED” MEAN FOR AN ADULT?If you are age 18 or older we may consider you “disabled” if you have a medically determinable physical or mental impairment (including an emotional or learning problem) which:
SSA is committed to providing benefits quickly to claimants whose medical conditions are so serious that their conditions clearly meet disability standards. Compassionate Allowances (CAL) are a way to quickly identify diseases and other medical conditions that, by definition, meet Social Security’s standards for disability benefits. These conditions primarily include certain cancers, adult brain disorders, and a number of rare disorders that affect children. The CAL initiative helps reduce waiting time to reach a disability determination for individuals with the most serious disabilities. By incorporating cutting-edge technology, the agency can easily identify potential CAL to quickly make decisions. SSA receives information form the public, advocacy groups, comments received from the Social Security and Disability Determination Services communities, counsel from medical and scientific experts, research with the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and information received from past public outreach hearings regarding potential CAL conditions. Go to www.ssa.gov/compassionateallowances/ for more information on CAL. WHAT DOES "LIMITED INCOME"INCLUDE?Income, for the purposes of SSI includes:
WHAT ARE "LIMITED RESOURCES"?Resources, for the purposes of SSI, are things you own such as:
The SSI limits for resources that we do count are: Individual/Child — $2,000 CITIZEN / NON–CITIZEN STATUSTo get SSI, you must be:
WHEN IS A NON-CITIZEN ELIGIBLE FOR SSI?Beginning August 22, 1996, most non–citizens must meet two requirements to be eligible for SSI:
A non–citizen must also meet all of the other requirements for SSI eligibility, including the limits on income, resources, etc. WHO IS A “QUALIFIED ALIEN”?There are seven categories of non–citizens who are qualified aliens. You are a "qualified alien" if the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) says you are in one of these categories:
In addition, you can be a “deemed qualified alien” if, under certain circumstances, you, your child, or your parent has been subjected to battery or extreme cruelty by a family member while in the United States. UNDER WHAT CONDITIONS IS A “QUALIFIED ALIEN” ELIGIBLE FOR SSI?If you are in one of the seven "qualified alien" categories listed above, or have been determined to be a “deemed qualified alien” because you have been subjected to battery or extreme cruelty, you may be eligible for SSI benefits if you have limited income and resources and are aged, blind, or disabled and also meet one of the following conditions:
EXEMPTION FROM THE AUGUST 22, 1996 LAW FOR CERTAIN NON-CITIZEN INDIANSCertain categories of non–citizens may be eligible for SSI and are not subject to the August 22, 1996, law. These categories include:
ADDITIONAL ELIGIBLE ALIEN CATEGORIESVictims of Severe Forms of Human Trafficking: You may be eligible for SSI under certain circumstances if the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Refugee Resettlement and the Department of Homeland Security determine that you meet the requirements of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000. Iraqi/Afghan Special Immigrants: You may also qualify for SSI for a period of seven years if you are an Iraqi or Afghani special immigrant admitted to the United States. On September 30, 2021, Congress passed the Afghanistan Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2022 (Public Law 117-43) and Section 2502 of this legislation provides that Afghan humanitarian parolees, known as Non-Special Immigrant Parolees, may qualify for SSI until March 31, 2023, or until the end of their parole period, whichever is later. WHAT IS RESIDENCY?You must:
WHO IS NOT ELIGIBLE FOR SSI?Some examples of who is not eligible for SSI include, but are not limited to: SOMEONE WHO HAS AN UNSATISFIED FELONY OR ARREST WARRANTYou are ineligible to receive SSI benefits for any month during which you have an unsatisfied felony OR arrest warrant for:
In addition, we cannot pay you any retroactive payments if you have one of these unsatisfied felony or arrest warrants. We will hold your retroactive payments until you contact SSA and provide proof that you satisfied the felony or arrest warrant. SOMEONE WHO IS IN PRISON OR JAILIf you are receiving SSI and you go to prison or jail, (this also includes correctional institutions, such as detention centers, halfway houses, boot camps, etc. but does not necessarily include home confinement) you are not eligible to receive SSI for any full calendar month you are incarcerated. In addition, we cannot pay any retroactive payments for benefits due before you were incarcerated. We will hold the retroactive payments until you contact SSA and provide proof that you are no longer a prisoner. Please see our pamphlet, ‘What Prisoners Need to Know’ or view it online at www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10133.pdf if you want more information about how being in jail or prison affects your SSI benefits. In most instances, you can apply for SSI benefits and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits several months before you expect to be released from prison or jail. See the SSI spotlight on the Prerelease Procedure. SOMEONE WHO IS IN A PUBLIC INSTITUTIONIf you are in any institution for a whole month that is run by a Federal, State or local government, you are not eligible for SSI for that month unless an exception applies such as residence in a public emergency shelter for the homeless or publicly operated community residence. If you expect to leave the institution, you may use the prerelease procedure described in the SSI spotlight on the Prerelease Procedure. SOMEONE WHO GIVES AWAY RESOURCESIf you give away a resource or sell it for less than it is worth in order to reduce your resources below the SSI resource limit, you may be ineligible for SSI for up to 36 months. SOMEONE WHO IS A NON–CITIZEN SSI RECIPIENT WHO FAILS TO MEET THE ALIEN STATUS REQUIREMENTS
SOMEONE WHO IS AN SSI RECIPIENT WHO IS ABSENT FROM THE U.S. FOR A FULL CALENDAR MONTH OR FOR 30 CONSECUTIVE DAYS OR MOREExcept for certain students temporarily abroad for study purposes or a child of military parents stationed overseas, an individual is not eligible for SSI benefits for any month during all of which he or she has been outside the U.S. Once an individual has been outside the U.S. for 30 consecutive days or longer, he or she must be back in the U.S. for 30 consecutive days to be eligible for SSI benefits. What makes you not eligible for Social Security?If you have no record of paying into the system, you will not receive payouts. If you have not reported income and evaded taxes for a lifetime, then you have no right to Social Security benefits.
How many years do you have to work to get maximum Social Security?You need to earn at least the taxable maximum each year for 35 years to get the maximum possible Social Security payment. If you don't work for 35 years, zeros are averaged into your calculation and will decrease your Social Security payments.
How many years is 40 credits for Social Security?The number of credits you need to be eligible for benefits depends on your age and the type of benefit. Anyone born in 1929 or later needs 10 years of work (40 credits) to be eligible for retirement benefits.
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